Teddy Fontana

SSW: Let’s start with your background. Growing up in a very musical family, when did you first discover your passion for music? How did music transform from something you loved into something that you also did?

Teddy Fontana: My older sister started taking piano lessons in our living room when I was around 3 or 4 years old. One day after one of her lessons I hopped up on the bench and tried to play the piano myself. It kind of just made sense to me off the bat and I started to improvise melodies on the piano. That caught my mom’s attention and she enrolled me in lessons soon after that. I didn’t take well to them. I didn’t want to learn or practice the songs in the piano books and I always insisted on performing my own compositions at recitals. This went on until I was about 11. My parents arranged for me to record my first piano demo of originals when I was in 3rd grade. My teacher played my piano CD for the class one day and I got so many positive reactions from my young peers. I felt like a professional musician. I was addicted to that feeling.

What type of music did you grow up listening to? Who has had the greatest influence on your taste in music over time?

Some of my earliest memories involving music were during car rides with my parents. My parents both loved The Beatles. I think I probably knew every Beatles song by the time I was 7. My mom was also a big Stevie Wonder fan and I can actually trace some of my sonic influence directly back to listening to songs like “Superstition” hundreds of times in the car. She also later introduced me to Joni Mitchell. I have to give my parents some credit for introducing me to great music. Though I will say I remember sitting on my bedroom floor and holding a Britney Spears CD in my hands before I was even in kindergarten and just being completely enamored with her and her sound. I remember knowing in that moment that I wanted to create and perform music.

How would you describe your sound in terms of feelings?

As I grew up listening to music in the car, I do a lot of my best songwriting while driving in the car. Usually because it’s a solitary space where I can really get my feelings out. Often times the feelings I work through in music are sadness or anger of frustration, or reflecting on behavior. I think I have yet to write a super happy sounding song. Sonically I sometimes describe my sound as “dark pop”. Because my music is usually inspired by melancholy and dark feelings, but I tend to incorporate that with a lot of sass and attitude. I think sad, but upbeat is interesting to listen to.

Since releasing your first single “Tidal Wave” in June of last year, the response to all of your releases has been pretty impressive. What has that feedback been like for you?

I put off releasing music for so long, because I think I was worried that no one would hear it. Navigating the industry in the beginning is confusing and challenging and different for every artist. I feel extremely lucky that I was able to reach a bigger audience than I anticipated with my first single. Having listeners really connect with my music has been incredibly gratifying.

You just dropped your new single “Breathing.” Such a great song, and it’s definitely different from everything you have released so far! Can you tell us more about it? What was the inspiration behind it and what was the creation process like?

“Breathing” was more of a collaborative effort than anything I’ve done before. I’d had a few different people tell me that elements of my music reminded them of Portishead. So I did a deep dive into three of their albums. I was inspired as a listener to incorporate elements instrumentally and production wise for this song. I brought an idea to two of my collaborators, Dru DeCaro and Alex Harris. I’d say we each contributed to the outcome of the song in an integral way and really fused some great ideas together.

When you were just starting out, what did you do to get your music out there? Any advice for aspiring songwriters/producers, about either the craft or business?

Don’t be afraid to start. I spent way too long holding on to my music before I let anyone hear it. Put your music out there, let the world have it. I put “Swerve” out on SoundCloud over a year ago and some of my most notable industry contacts reached out to me after just hearing it on there. Navigating the industry can be a daunting process, but you have to start somewhere.

The music industry has been severely impacted by the current global situation, and all of us have had to adapt and adjust our lives and plans. Have your plans for music releases changed? Have you found any new and creative ways to reach your audience?

Absolutely. Staying inside in indefinite isolation is not particularly conducive to human happiness. I think everyone is struggling with that to some degree but it’s obviously the priority to keep everyone safe. I actually feel very lucky that I’m still able to write and make music during this time, but the circumstances are also somewhat creatively stifling. I was going to release an EP within the next month or so, but I’m having to reevaluate that. It’s comforting to me to know that everyone is in the same boat and we’re all having to just take it one day at a time.

Let’s talk more about your personal journey. What is the hardest lesson you’ve learnt in life so far?

I think one of the hardest and most important lessons one has to learn especially as an artist, is to not compare yourself to others. As a musician and just as a human. It’s truly counterproductive to try and compare your path or your music or your success to someone else’s, but it’s also way too easy to do that. I think representing yourself as an artist as genuinely as possible is what people are most drawn to. You can’t fake authenticity. In a time where we all have contrived identities on social media, which is essentially just a curated highlight reel, I think a lot of young girls are susceptible to believing this illusion of perfection that everyone works so hard to portray. It’s unhealthy. Be mindful of how much of it is a complete simulation. Don’t compare yourself to others and hold yourself to your own standards.

Growing as a person, you will always encounter challenges that require leaving your comfort zone to try things that scare you. What scares you? Is there anything new and exciting you’d like to try?

Of course. I’m a really introverted person, like to a crippling degree. I can fake charisma pretty well, but sometimes answering a phone call feels like it’s about to deplete my entire social battery for the day. I’m usually very uncomfortable in social situations unless I’m with someone I’m really close with. I want to be able to connect with people easier and more frequently because friendships are so valuable.

How do you use your intuition in your creative process?

I’ve put a lot of blind faith in trusting my intuition in my career so far. I tend to have a pretty strong sense of direction in all my own creative endeavors. If you’re a songwriter, you know that sometimes it feels like a song is already written and you’re just finding the pieces and putting them in order. I try to be open minded to guidance and opinions and ideas from others but not above keeping a firm hand on the wheel and steering where I want it to go if it’s something that I’m putting my name on.

We’ve got one last question for you! Thinking of yourself as a soul on Earth, what do you think your purpose is?

Someone recently asked me what my goal in life was, and the only answer I could think of was “to feel fulfilled”. A lot of that fulfillment is reaching and connecting with other people and hopefully offering them something with my music. I like to think art is a universal language we can all communicate with and try to understand in our own way. Listening to good music just kind of increases my life force. When I discover a song that I love I am consciously so grateful that it was made. I hope my music will offer something to others.